China's Xi strikes conciliatory note, broadens diplomatic focus

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's President Xi Jinping ratcheted down Beijing's heated rhetoric and called on the government to expand its foreign policy agenda through cooperation and diplomacy.

China should "promote peaceful resolution of differences and disputes between countries through dialogue and consultation, and oppose the willful use of threat of force," Xi said in a major policy address this weekend, according to a report by the official Xinhua News Agency late on Saturday.